William spear



duit-ril gisten @getest @tina WIhlrIAliIl SPEAR, OF CAPE ELIZABETH,MAINE.-

Lettcfrs Patent Nc. 104,073, dated June 7, 1870.

rar'saovancmvr IN'ALARMS son sarna.

The Schedule referred t ifi-these Lettera Patent and making'part of theseme Ving the tube andiwatch-room.

-Figure 2 is a sectional elevation of the apartment, with safe inclosed.

Figure 3 is a top view of the diaphragm of the safeapartment. Thepurpose of my invention is to provide ameth'od of protecting safes andother vaults /and apartments from intrusion and burglary, by means of aAmethod of communicating intelligence to any desired or arranged point,if the conditions under which my invention places the same are disturbedor deranged, and also to indicate if fire is aifecting the saidconditions. The purpose is, also, to provide a system or series ofregularly or irregularly recurring signals or indications, by which thesafety-of the vault, Sto., is from time to time made known.

My invention consists of an air-tight. chamber or compartment, with anair-tube or tubes leading away therefi'oui to some watch-room, where awatchman is to be placed. In this chamber the safe is placed, or thechamber itself may constitute the safe. The air in the chamber `iscondensed by an air-forcer, or by any knownV process.

The principle of communicating is that, by opening Ior forcing thechamber wheufthus charged with air, and the consequent change andmovement of the air to restore equilibrium with the atmosphere, aneffect is produced in, and communicated through the tubes to thevroom orplace, where, by means of a. gauge or signal of 'any kind, the fact ismade known to the Watchman.

' When affected by fire, the -expansion of the? air in thechamber'consequent thereupon, b'y its increase of pressure in the tubesand chamber, will also convey intelligence the same as when thecondensed air is permitted to escape. f=

My method of communicating intelligence to headl or watch office, maythus be explained.

The safe or chamber is first-charged with air at a density greater thanthat ofthe natural atmosphere. The same, or nearly the same conditions,exist in the tube leading away from said chamber.

Where the tube terminates, or at the watch-room or oice, the undisturbedcondition of the safe is shown' by an air-gauge standing cntinually at agiven.

degree, but, when the safe is opened, and the pressure is reduced, acorresponding change in the gauge will showthe change in the pressure.The fact may be communicated by some device to produce sound, placed atthe. end cf the tube, or in any other convenient ryhe method ofproducing regularly recurring signals toindicate the safety ofthechamber is by means of certain mechanicaldevices,as, for instance, aclockwork, which, at regularA intervals opens the ends of the tubesentering the chambers, (the same being first closed,)v and thus allows asignal to be made through .the tube, and heard or seen in thewatch-room.

In order that the execution of a number of these signals may be providedfor, as, for instance, during. the course of an entire night, without soreducing the pressure in the chamber-that it would nally have-uo eiecton the indicator in the watch-room, I furnish two additional features tomy invention. I first provide my 'chamber with an air-tight, but movabletop, which may be so weighted as to keep up a pressure of any, desiredamount,- by its weight ou the contained airof the chamber. rlhus, as theair-.is slightly reduced in density by one of the clock signals, theslight descent of the top will maintain or restore the original density.

The other feature is, charging the communicating tubes with air to apoint nearly up to .the Vcondition of the air in the chamber, 'and thusrequiring a less expenditure of air from the chamberv to make thesignal, or, in otherwords, arranging at lthe watch-room end of the tubea valve, which will be of sufficient stiffness to remain closed'at apressure littleless than the pressure of the safe or chamber, but whichwill -be opened when that .pressure is let ou to it.

The manner in` 4which the tubei's openedby the clock-work, is asfollows:

The movement of the clock slowly moves a rotating disk with sprockets orteeth projecting from 'its vperiphery.

'lhe-safe-end of the tube is closed by a valve having an'l arm, which is`reached and moved by the said sprockets.

When this arm is thus moved, the valve is opened and the signal made,and the tooththen dropping off from the arm,'the valve is closed, andthe wheelf revolves without reference to the valve till the next toothreaches the arm.

These regularly, or irregularly recurring signals show that the safe isundisturbed, and they may be changed from night to night, by alteringthe relative positions of the sprockets, which are, for this end.,maderem'ovable by the hand. Y

By this arrangement, -anumber of safes, banks, or other depositarios ofvaluables and property, may communicate with one head room or otlice, tobe occupiedby a watchman who is continually informed of the safety ofthe depositaries, by the tubes and s/ignals before described, and of thefact of their insecurity or danger, as also hereinbefore set forth.

A communication can be kept up with police, or other ollicer's of a cityor town, by means of `signals at given periods, to be made by thewatchman, which signals would serve the double purpose of showing thatthe said Watchman is not remiss in his duty, nor incapacitated from thesame, and of conveying' intelligence of the safety or otherwise of anyof such depositaries, to the said police or other oliieers.

In case of an attempted burglary at anyy point, the locality of the sameis made known to the police, either by the character of the signalsthemselves, or by inquiry at the watch-office.

In the accompanying drawing--` a shows the safe, or the apartment tocontainv the same.

b shows a safe placed therein.

c shows the movable top.

d, the tube for forcing in the air.

c, the entrance, or door.

f, the connecting-tube.

g, the watch-room.

h, an illustration of the signal, which is to be hereafter described'.

t', the sprocket-wheel.

tube.

7c is a xed diaphragm, having a valve, l, which is to be moreparticularly described.A

m n is a pawl and teeth `on the post o, rising lfrom the top of themovable top c, which will also be here after described.

p shows a valve which is used to open and close the aperture q, by whichthe signal in the watch-room is operated. When the sprocket-wheel in thesafe apartment opens the valve, the pressure of the air in the safeapartment, being communicated througlithe tube j, forces the valve pbythe aperture, which, being thus opened, operates the signal.

The movement of the valve, however, compresses the air in the cylinderin which it is, and the pressure from the safe being withdrawn, thiscompressed air in the cylinder forces back the valve, closes theaperture, and the signal ceases to operate.

In order thatbut little loss of the compressed air may be made at thetime of opening the safe, it may be connected at the bottom, sides, andtop, of the front side thereof, with the interior surface of theairchamber, by air-tight divisions.v

In some most convenient part of said divisions, I make an opening, soconstructed that it shall be opened and closed at such periods as may bedesired, by clock-work, so that only the small amount of air containedbetween the door of the air-chamber and j, the lever and valve whichcloses the connectingthe door of the safe will have to be exhausted onopening the vault and safe, The valve l is intended to illustrate this,though, in the drawing, it is placed in the center of the fixeddiaphragm; but in case oftheuse of the divisions above described, thedivision that extends from the top edge of the front side of the safe,will take the place of the diaphragm, rendering the use of thediaphragm, as a whole, unnecessary.

The use ofthe ratchet and pawl fm n is more partieularly applicable incase of lire, when, by reason of the heat,` the air contained in thechamber will have a tendency to expand.

If the movable top were lett free to rise, no signal of danger would begiven at the watch-room; but, by the arrangement shown, it is preventedfrom rising, and the increased pressure will be shown by the fixedgauge.

The clock-work that moves the sprocket-wheel is not shown, it being ascommon.

The use of atmospheric air alone is not intended to be claimed, but itis evident that any other gas or uid thought desirable may be used. I donot claim broadly the use of compressed air for giving alarm-signals.

What I claim as my invention, and desire t0 secure by Letters Patent,isp 1. lhe use of compressed air, or other gases or uids, in acompartment having a movable top, which is capable of being held at anypoint'bya ratchet and pawl, to regulate, by its weight, the density ofthe air within said chamber, the said chamber being intended to containa safe, or articles of value, as described.

2. The sprocket-wheel i, the valve j, the commu; nicating tube f, andthe signalizing device atV the watch-room to produce the regularly orirregularly recurring signals, as lde seribed.

3. 'lhe diaphragm k, with the valve l, or the described equivalenttherefor, to prevent the escape of condensed air when the chamber isopen, as described.

4. The movable top c, and the p'awl and teeth m n, in combination withthe tubes fand valve p, as a tirealarm, substantially as described.

5. The improved safe, or safe-containing apartment, as described,vha\ingthe top c, the sprocket-wheel t', the valve j, and the communicatingtube f, and the signalizing device at the watch-room, by means of whichone or more safe or safes are placed in communication with a head oiiieeer watch-room, to which place intelligence is intermittngly conveyed oftheir safety, and information tothe contrary, the moment' that any orall are in danger, substantially as herein described.

. WILLIAM SPEAR.

Witnesses WM. HENRY CLIFFORD, HENRY C, HOUSTON.

